Phuket Old Town Food Tour: 15+ Tastings with Small Group

Eat your way through Phuket Old Town's hidden street vendors and leave knowing how to find them again

A small-group food tour of Phuket Old Town limited to 8 guests, led by a professional foodie guide through 4 hours and 15+ tastings of Thai, Chinese, Malay and Burmese street food. The tour starts at Ranong Main Market in the heart of the old city and moves through backstreets most visitors never find. Vegetarians and pescatarians can join, though 2–3 of the 15 tastings may not suit them. The tour is not suitable for severe shellfish or peanut allergies due to cross-contamination risk. Water and soft drinks are included. The regular departure times are 10:00am and 10:30am, with an occasional 12:30pm slot that skips the market stop.

Step-by-step itinerary

Phuket Old Town Foodie Tour

• Meet at Ranong Main Market
• Explore backstreets of Phuket Old Town
• Taste 15+ local street food dishes
• Enjoy Burmese curries with wood-fired naan
• Eat Hokkien noodles with chopsticks
• Try crispy roti with massaman curry
• Sample poh pia rolls with tamarind sauce
• Conclude tour back at Ranong Main Market

The experience

You've got a free afternoon and you're tired of the same pad Thai and green curry that every beach resort serves. Phuket Old Town is where the real food lives. It's why UNESCO named it Thailand's City of Gastronomy in 2017. The backstreets here hold vendors who've been making the same dishes for decades, but they're tucked away enough that you'd walk past them without a guide. This tour takes you to 15+ of them in 4 hours, starting at Ranong Main Market and moving through the old trading post's maze of stalls and shopfronts.

You'll stop at a tucked-away workers' teashop to mop up Burmese curries with wood-fired naan, then practice your chopstick skills on a bowl of Hokkien noodles. The guide will point out which vendor makes the best one in town. You'll work through crispy roti dipped in creamy massaman curry, poh pia rolls smothered in tamarind sauce, and a dozen more dishes that shift depending on what the street vendors have that day. The group stays at 8 people maximum, so you're moving through tight spaces without a crowd, and your guide is a professional foodie who knows the owners and the stories behind each dish. Bottled water and local soft drinks come with the tour. The rest is eating.

The tour ends back at Ranong Market with the knowledge you need to keep eating street food across Thailand on your own. Note that the regular departures run at 10:00am and 10:30am, and the occasional 12:30pm slot skips the market stop but hits the same number of tastings. Street food vendors take time off, so the exact stops shift from day to day, but the tour is always packed with the good stuff.

What’s included

• 15+ food tastings from Burmese, Thai, Chinese and Malay vendors.
• bottled water and local soft drinks.
• 4 hours with a professional foodie guide.
• entry to Ranong Main Market (on the 10:00am and 10:30am tours only).

Before you book

Days and timesEvery dayDepartures at 10:00 and 11:00

Book up to2h before

AgesAdult (13 and older) · Child (3 to 12 years) · Infant (under 3): free

GroupUp to 8

Live guideEnglish

Meeting point and pickupNo hotel pickup: you go to the meeting point. Ends back at the starting point.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated today

Good to know

Low physical effortStroller-friendlyPets welcomePublic transport nearbyNot recommended during pregnancy

Operated by A Chef's Tour

Is this one for you?You'll taste 15+ dishes across hidden Phuket Old Town spots in 4 hours with a guide who knows the owners and their stories: the kind of deep dive that teaches you how to eat street food across Thailand afterward.

Traveler reviews

4.99★★★★★★★★★★

2,182 verified traveler reviews

5 ★2,158

4 ★20

3 ★2

2 ★2

1 ★0

Read all the reviews ›

Top questions

Can children come?

Yes. Ticket types: Child (3 to 12 years); Infant (under 3): free.

Can I do this tour if I'm vegetarian?

Vegetarians and pescatarians can join the tour, though 2–3 of the 15 tastings may not suit your diet. You won't go hungry. The remaining tastings are still a full meal's worth of food.

What time does the Phuket Old Town food tour start?

The regular departures are 10:00am and 10:30am. An extra tour sometimes runs at 12:30pm, which skips the Ranong Main Market stop but includes the same number of tastings elsewhere in the old town.

How many people go on each tour?

Groups are limited to 8 guests maximum, so you're moving through the backstreets as a small group instead of a crowd.

What's included in the 15+ tastings?

The tastings cover Thai, Chinese, Malay and Burmese street food: Burmese curries with wood-fired naan, Hokkien noodles, crispy roti with massaman curry, poh pia rolls with tamarind sauce, and a dozen more dishes that depend on what vendors have that day. Bottled water and local soft drinks are included. Alcoholic drinks are not.

Is this tour suitable for severe food allergies?

The tour is not recommended for severe shellfish or peanut allergies due to the risk of traces and cross-contamination in the street food stalls. The tour reflects local cuisine and the way vendors prepare food, so dietary restrictions cannot always be fully accommodated.

Why is Phuket Old Town known for food?

Phuket Old Town was a major trading post with influences from across Asia (Thailand, China, Malaysia, Burma and beyond), which evolved into a unique local cuisine you won't find in central Thailand. UNESCO named it Thailand's City of Gastronomy in 2017 for this reason.